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I just acquired a silverface Fender Musicmaster Bass amp ('76)--apparently a lousy bass amp, but decent for guitar. I gather that it's quite similar to a Champ, with solid-state rectification and a 12" speaker. I also gather that a speaker upgrade can do a lot for these amps. Any suggestions--I'd like to get as close as I can to a classic Fender "chime and shimmer" clean? I'm a bedroom player, so I don't need to worry about how loud it can go. Thanks!
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Actually it's not at all like a Champ - and quite unlike other Fenders as it uses a tranformer for the phase inverter. Most like one of the Gibson "Deluxe"-ish amps. Still a nice amp in it's way but yer not going to get it to sound like any other Fender cuz the basic topology is that much different.
Other's will have speaker recommendations - just didn't want you to be disappointed if you can't make it more "Fenderish" - enjoy it for what it is.
Rob -
For an inexpesive solution I recommend Weber's Alnico Signature 12. I put one in my MM Bass and really like it. It's much, much better than the crappy stock speaker that came in the amp. The amp is actually much closer to a one channel tweed Deluxe than a Champ, maybe a Harvard is closest. But it's not a direct cross with anything else due to its odd transformer phase inverter. Still, it's a great sounding little amp, I use mine for band practice all the time and really enjoy it.
For a better speaker than the Signature 12 I'd go with probably a Weber 12A125, or possibly even the 12A150. But those are pretty pricey for such a low buck amp.
note: a simple upgrade (IMO) to the stock tone control is to wire up one like the Harvard. All you need is a couple of caps and a couple inches of some wire. I used a 500pf silver mica and a .0047 polyester for mine, but I might consider dropping that 500pf cap down a bit as the amp is bit bright. Sure beats the stock tone control though.Comment
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Thanks for the info, everyone. I'll check out the Weber Signature Series.Comment
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